8vo, DESIGN GROUP
"Founded by Mark Holt, Simon Johnston and Hamish Muir
8vo designed a wide range of typographically-based projects in identity, print, publishing, record packaging and information design for clients in the UK, Europe and the U.S. between 1984 and 2001" - 8vo WEBSITE
"8vo design were an integral part of the Factory design family. Principally designing for label stalwart Durutti Column, 8vo also created some of the legendary Hacienda birthday posters, whilst still finding time to set the tone for late 80s design in the United Kingdom."- extract from Inside Factory Design: 8vo at partypeoplemovie.com
" We had no real idea of what we were doing (in that sense) – we just got on with the work and tried to make each job good, and better than the one before. We were definitely not designing with anyone else in mind other than the client (usually second) and our own drive to develop work based on our interest in the use of type as the core ingredient of our approach to design." - HAMISH MUIR
MY ANALYSIS
- THE OVERTLY DIGITAL / CODED AESTHETIC OF 8vo IS INTERESTING DUE TO THE INFLUX OF INFORMATION PRESENTED ON EACH SHEET OF WORK.
- THE COLOUR SCHEME OF EACH PIECE WORKS WELL AND IS COMPLIMENTARY, SUGGESTING A CARE FOR THE AESTHETIC.
- UNLIKE OTHER RESEARCH I HAVE COMPLETED, I FIND 8vo's WORK TO BE HEAVILY IMMERSED IN TEXT. THE VARYING TEXT SIZES AND POSITIONING ARE A BLOCK TO THE COMMUNICATION AND THEREFORE ARE LESS SUCCESSFUL IN PORTRAYING A MESSAGE THAN OTHER DOCUMENTS.
- THE STRUCTURAL AESTHETIC IS SOMETHING THAT I WOULD LIKE TO APPLY TO MY WORK IN ORDER TO CONTRAST WITH OTHER STYLES I'VE EXPLORED (FOR EXAMPLE STITCHING)
- THE IDEA OF CONTRASTING BUSY, FILLED PAGES WITH MINIMALIST PAGES IS SOMETHING I COULD CONSIDER WHEN DESIGNING MY PUBLICATION.